>From cnn.com banner: Coalition forces in convoy find sarin nerve agent in artillery round rigged as improvised explosive device, U.S. military says. Details soon
----- Original Message ----- From: "Steven Johnson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "RollTideFan-The University of Alabama Athletics Discussion List" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, May 17, 2004 10:30 AM Subject: Re: [RollTideFan] Out of the frying pan...... > Has this become a political board? > > RTR > LC > --- Joel Perry <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Strapped for troops, the Pentagon wants to redeploy > > U.S. troops in South > > Korea to Iraq > > By Robert Burns, Associated Press, 5/17/2004 01:22 > > WASHINGTON (AP) In a sign of the Iraq war's > > increasing strain on the U.S. > > Army, the Pentagon is considering an extraordinary > > shift of troops to Iraq > > from their garrisons in South Korea, where they have > > stood guard for decades > > against a feared invasion by forces of communist > > North Korea, official say. > > The move reflects not only the Army's difficulty in > > finding enough soldiers > > for the next rotation of forces into Iraq later this > > year but also Defense > > Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld's push for greater > > flexibility in deploying > > troops based anywhere in the world, including the > > Korean peninsula. > > The U.S. commitment to defending South Korea is the > > most enduring of its > > kind, after the collapse of the former Soviet Union > > and the Warsaw Pact that > > threatened Europe until it dissolved in 1991. U.S. > > forces saved South Korea > > after the North invaded without warning in June > > 1950. > > South Korean officials offered the first word Sunday > > that the United States > > wanted to move some of the 37,000 U.S. troops > > stationed there to Iraq, and > > Pentagon officials confirmed that talks were under > > way. > > The issue is politically sensitive because of the > > concern about a potential > > North Korean attack across the Demilitarized Zone > > that has separated the > > North and South since the Korean War ended in a > > truce in July 1953. U.S. and > > South Korean forces remain on a war footing because > > the truce has never been > > converted to a peace treaty, and the two Koreas are > > technically still at > > war. > > ''The U.S. government has told us that it needs to > > select some U.S. troops > > in South Korea and send them to Iraq to cope with > > the worsening situation in > > Iraq,'' said Kim Sook, head of the South Korean > > Foreign Ministry's North > > American Bureau. > > Tapping into the U.S. force on the Korean peninsula, > > the Cold War's last > > remaining flash point, would be a historic move by > > the Pentagon. It > > underscores the degree to which the military is > > stretched to provide enough > > forces for Iraq while also meeting its other > > commitments. > > The Pentagon had planned to reduce the number of > > troops in Iraq to about > > 115,000 this spring, but an increasingly bloody > > insurgency forced a change > > in plans. The Pentagon announced this month that it > > now plans to keep about > > 135,000 troops in Iraq for at least the next year > > and a half. > > Kim said the two allies are working out details, > > including the size and > > timing of the redeployment of U.S. troops from South > > Korea. The forces have > > traditionally served as a deterrent against North > > Korea's 1.1-million-member > > military, which is the world's fifth largest > > although severely hampered in > > its equipping and training by the communist nation's > > chronic economic > > problems. > > In Washington, a senior defense official confirmed > > that the Pentagon is in > > discussions with the South Korean government about > > using some Korea-based > > U.S. forces in Iraq. The official, who spoke on > > condition of anonymity, said > > the shift was not imminent but would be part of the > > next rotation of > > American troops in Iraq, which is scheduled to begin > > this summer. He offered > > no other details. > > South Korea's mass-circulation JoongAng Ilbo > > newspaper, quoting unnamed > > government sources, reported that a brigade of 4,000 > > U.S. troops belonging > > to the 2nd Infantry Division will move to Iraq > > ''within several weeks.'' > > The division, based at Camp Red Cloud, is deployed > > along the tense border > > with North Korea, the world's most heavily armed. It > > has a formidable array > > of combat power, including two combat maneuver > > brigades, an aviation > > brigade, a combat engineer brigade, an air defense > > artillery regiment and a > > military police company. It has been stationed in > > South Korea since 1965. > > The division's 3rd Brigade, known as the Arrowhead > > Brigade, is based at Fort > > Lewis, Wash., as a reserve force for Korea. That > > brigade, which was the > > first in the Army to transition from tanks to the > > new Stryker wheeled > > vehicle, has been operating in northern Iraq since > > late last fall. > > Kim, the South Korean official, said it was too > > early to speculate on > > whether the troops will return to South Korea after > > their Iraq mission. The > > Bush administration wants to reduce the number of > > troops stationed > > permanently in South Korea, but no decisions have > > been made. > > South Korea has feared that a cut in U.S. military > > presence might weaken the > > two allies' combined defense readiness against North > > Korea amid tension over > > the communist state's nuclear weapons program. > > At the administration's urging, South Korea has > > agreed to send more than > > 3,000 of its troops to Iraq to help stabilize and > > rebuild the country. They > > are expected to arrive this summer. > > ( I bet those 3,000 South Korean troops are excited > > about going to Iraq.) > > > > > > > ______________________________________________________ > > RollTideFan - The University of Alabama Athletics > > Discussion List > > > > "Welcome to RollTideFan! Wear a cup!" > > > > To join or leave the list or to make changes to your > > subscription visit http://listinfo.rolltidefan.net > > > > > > __________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > SBC Yahoo! - Internet access at a great low price. > http://promo.yahoo.com/sbc/ > > ______________________________________________________ > RollTideFan - The University of Alabama Athletics Discussion List > > "Welcome to RollTideFan! Wear a cup!" > > To join or leave the list or to make changes to your subscription visit > http://listinfo.rolltidefan.net > ______________________________________________________ RollTideFan - The University of Alabama Athletics Discussion List "Welcome to RollTideFan! Wear a cup!" To join or leave the list or to make changes to your subscription visit http://listinfo.rolltidefan.net
